A NINE-YEAR-OLD York girl has made it her mission to cycle as far as she can, to raise money for St Leonard’s Hospice in 2024.
Maia Lingwood, who is a pupil at Poppleton Road Primary School, got the idea for the challenge after a Brownie meeting and has committed to cycling as many miles as she can during 2024.
She has already got off to a flying start by cycling almost 50 miles and raising more than £400 for the hospice.
Her dad, David Lingwood, said: "It got her thinking about what she could potentially do to give something back to the community and set her mind off thinking about which charity to choose.
"We live just around the corner from St Leonard’s Hospice and one of our neighbour’s relatives had been well cared for at the hospice, so it was a natural choice in the end.
“We’re so proud of her – she’s fantastic in so many different ways.
"It’s great that she knows the importance of kindness and giving something back and she’s become really excited by setting up the Just Giving page. She’s pushing herself and I’m enjoying spending time cycling with her as it’s keeping me fit too.”
Maia, who lives not far from the Tadcaster Road hospice, has been cycling to school and to Brownies and also competed the “Solar System Way from York to Selby.
She said: “I love cycling because it’s a lot quicker than walking and you can go really fast downhills and up hills and it’s really fun.”
Sarah Atkinson, Events and Community Manager at St Leonard’s Hospice, said: “This is a fabulous gesture by young Maia and it just shows that, whatever age you are, you can help us provide our care for people when they need it most.
"We really rely on donations from our community to help us continue our vital work and we’re very grateful to Maia for her support.”
Maia and her dad, Dave Lingwood, visited St Leonard’s Hospice to speak to staff about their important work, meeting Paloma Sanchez Barbero, Care Assistant at St Leonard’s Hospice.
She said: “It was lovely to meet Maia and hear about her cycling and fundraising. We’re so very grateful for her support, as we rely on the community to help us keep caring for people when they need us most.”
To sponsor Maia, please visit her JustGiving page justgiving.com/page/maia-lingwood-1704104949538
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